Propeller shaft



Aug. 7, 1945. c. l.. DEWEY PROPELLER SHAFT Filed June 23, 1945 llllllllllllll Il vPatented Aug. 7, 1945 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE' 5 Claims.

The invention in the form herein shown and described is intended for use as an automobile propeller shaft employed as a driving connection between the transmission and the rear axle, although shafts of like character may be employed for other purposes. i

The typical automobile propeller shaft is required to transmit the full torque of the motor multiplied by the greatest gear reduction of the transmission, which is usually about 3 to 1 onlow l0 gear and reverse. It is also required to transmit the full motor torque at full motor speed on high gear, and this isusually about 4000 R. P. M. with moderncars and is progressively increasing from year to year as motor speeds increase. 5

Since with normal design the distance from transmission to rear axle is around six feet, the approximate length of the unsupported propeller shaft is in the neighborhood of five feet. With shafts of such length rotating at such speeds, 20

there is a strong tendency for the shaft to bow outwardly at the center of tlce span under the action of centrifugal force, and this produces vibration and whip which is destructive and annoying.

This shaft-whip is caused by minute static unbalance of the propeller shaft or may be initiated by deections caused by road-vibration which act transversely of the shaft. To avoid this difficulty, the shafts are customarily formed 3U of large diameter, tl'rin tubing so as to obtain great rigidity with low mass, so as to minimize the transverse inertia deflections.

To transmit the torsion to and from the shaft,

it is customary to have splined connections at 35 each end whichmay be either external or internal to the shaft and connect it to one or more universal joints. Owing to small relative longitudinal movements of the rear axle and transmission due to road irregularities at least one 40A' -splined end is allowed to slide lengthwise.

Tre present invention is directed primarily to the completed shaft itself vaswell as to the couform to the conditions above outlined.

pling features per se which are designed to con? 4 Further objects and details will appear from' a description of theinvention in conjunction, with the accompanying drawing wherein- Figure l is a side view with portions broken away showing the completed shaft with accom 50 panying details showing the con end; and

Figs. 2, 3, and 4 are three views of a section guration at each of tubing partly broken away and showing the r progressive st 'ages of its reduction and fabrica- "5 0 intervening grooves 2li.

j tion in form to receive the male and female coupling elements at opposite ends of the shaft with detail views showing the configuration at oppolsite ends of the shaft in the third and fourth stages of its transformation.

In fabricating .the shaft of the present invention, I rst employ a section I0 of uniform cylindrical metal tubing of thev proper length, diameter, and gauge and subject each end thereof to a reducing operation which may be performed in conformity with the method shown and described in my patent of April 25, 1944, No. 2,347,175, or if desired, I may employ an extended length of tubing adapted to be first configured and afterwards cut into units each of a size to permit completion as a single shaft as described in Dewey Patent No.` 2,265,723, issued December 9, 1941. I do not, however, limit myself to the use of either of these methods in initially reducing the ends of the tube to the form shown.

The reducing operation performed as above described or in any other suitable manner, results in the formation at opposite ends of the tube section of tapered shoulder portions Il and I2 terminating in cylindrical sockets I3 and I4 respectively, the former of which may be termed the male socket, and the latter the female socket. The male socket is of smaller diameter than the female socket, and it will be noted that in each case the wall thickness progressively increases throughout the shoulder portion and retains a maximum uniform thickness throughout the socket portion as shown in Fig. 3.

The ends of the shaft thus reduced are next grooved to provide squared shallow locking splines I5 and intervening grooves which extend in parallel relation throughout the length of the bushing Il at the female end of the shaft. The

male stem comprises an outer head I8 provided with longitudinal squared coupling splines I9 and The head is formed on the end of a slightly reduced neck 2l which at its inner end merges intovan enlarged circumferential ridge 22 behind which the stem is in- Icut to provide a somewhat'deeper groove 23 leaving an abrupt shoulder 24 at the juncture of the groove with the adjoining ridge. The stem at its inner end terminates in an enlarged inner head 25 provided with squared locking splines 26 and intervening grooves which are of a width and depth to afford an extremely close driving fit Awithithe complementaryl grooves and splines of the male socket. This permits the male stem to be driven into place within the socket, and

-the interengaging grooves and splines are of sufficient depth and so closely interfitted as to resist tortional stresses and vibrations.

With the parts thus united, a closely fitting ferrule 21 of uniform cylindrical form is driven to place around the cylindrical socket end of the shaft until its inner end encounters the taper of the adjacent shouldered portion of the shaft after which both the outer end of theferrule and the end ofthe surrounded socket portion are subjected to a reducing or spinning operation which contracts these portions of the structure sufllciently to force the wall of the socket end into groove 23 and the tip ofthe ferrule to overlap and closely impinge upon the rim of the ridge 22. This offsetting ofthe end of the socket into the groove 23 provides a shoulder 28 against which the forward ends of the splines 26 of the inner head impinge while the splines at their opposite ends impinge against the terminal end facesof the socket grooves sotha't themale stem will be rigidly and permanently locked in position and the union this afforded will be even more effective than one afforded byl welding, since the temper of the interlocked areas will not be softened or impaired by the effects of heat. e

The opposite or female socket of the shaft is proportioned to receive the female coupling i1 assoss slightly reducing the outside diameter and modifying the taper of the shoulder portions to the configuration shown in Fig. 1.and at the same time vhardening the metal and giving it perfect circularity throughout with more perfect ,balance and alignment with the coupling members. Buch cated as above described will maintain this origia final operation is desirable when extreme precision is required.

The shaft with its fittings formed and fabriiial Vcireularity while the inter-fitted portions.

. which may be preliminarily hardened or temunderstood that like results might be obtained by'providing the lsaine type of coupling at both ends of a shaft section with' complementary couprovided with shallow squared splines 30 and intervening grooves adapted to closely register and interengage with the .grooves and splines of the 4female socket end ofthe shaft so that a rigid driving iit may be obtained until the ends of the ends of the grooves in the shaft end and until the butt of the shaft encounters a shouldered circumferential ridge '3| outwardly protruding from the coupling socket. l

The wall of the socket behind the shoulder thus formed is circumferentially grooved at 32, and the coupling socket is provided with a cirsplines on the coupling socket encounter the' cumferential flange I3 at its tip end within which the inner rlm is throated at 34. Thesocket coupling along its inner wall is provided with a series of squared relatively deep grooves $5 and intervening coupling splines 36 which are complementary to the splines and grooves of a male stem identical with that at the opposite end of the shaft so that a sliding or telescoping fit will be provided at one end of the shaft with a female 'transmission coupling socket of complementary v character which may include a universal joint and at the'other end with a male connection associated with the rear axle or a universal joint in train therewith. It will, of course, be understood that the present inventionl is directed rather to the nature of the-shaft and its fittings than to the driving and driven elements with which it is' associated and to the provision of male and female elements, of the character dey scribed howsoever locatedwithin a driving train and so related as to provide a telescoping en gagement to compensate for variations in spacing occasioned by vibration or other causes.

- the parts together, and a ferrule encircling the end portion of the transmissionlelement and havl thickness progressively increasing The permanent retention of the coupling socket is ensured by driving a ferrule 31 to place on the end of the shaft Vsocket and thereafter reducing both the ferrule and the enclosed lend of the shaft to force, the shaft wall into the groove 32 and the tip end of the ferrule into contact with the margin of the ridge Si.

It may be desirable, after the shaft has been plings provided in the adjoining members of a' transmission train and that the present description is directed rather to the nature lof the, individual coupling members and the manner of forming and uniting the same with members of a transmission train, than to their conjoint employment in any particular member of the train.

vI claim:

l. In an invention of 'coupling elementalso having formed on its exterior a series of locking grooves and splin close- 1y interengaging with the interior splines and l grooves on the transmission element, and the coupling .element having formed on its exterior wall a circumferential groove underlying the end portion of the transmission element, the surrounding wall of the latter being reduced to enter and` snugly engage said grooved wall to interlock ing its ownend reduced to snugly 'engage the reduced wall of the tron element.

2'. In an inventionof the character described,v

element' yhaving anenlarged body and a socket end portion of smaller diameter connected with the body by a. tapering shoulder porti n, the wall gh the shoulder vportion to maximum thickness in the end portion, thelatter having therein a series of interior longitudinally extending locking splines with intervening grooves, and a coupling element having formed therein longitudinally extending coupling splines andv intervening grooves adapted to telescope with the grooves and splines of a coupling element 'of complementary character, the

f the character described. I the combination. of a tubular power transmission coupling element also having formed on its exterior a sereis of looking grooves and splines closely interengaging with the interior 'splines and grooves on the transmission element,. and the coupling element having formed on its exterior wall a circumferential groove underlying the end portion of the transmission element, the surrounding wall of the latter being reduced to enter and snugly engage said grooved Wall to interlock the parts together, and a ferrule encircling the grooves and splines of the transmission element,

and having at its outer end a series of longitudinally extending coupling splines and intervening grooves adapted to telescope with the grooves and splines of a complementary female coupling element, the male coupling element having formed in its exterior wall a circumferential groove and the surrounding wall of the transmission element being reduced to enter and snugly engage said grooved wall to interlock the parts together, and a. ferrule encircling the end portion of the transmission element and having its oWn end reduced to snugly engage the reduced Wall of the transmission element.

4. In an invention of the class described, the combination of a tubular power transmission element having in its end portion a series of interior longitudinally extending locking splines with intervening grooves and a female coupling element of tubular form having formed thereon a series of longitudinally extending Vexterior locking splines with intervening grooves closely interfitted with the locking grooves and splines of the transmission element and having on its interior a series 'of longitudinally extending coupling splines and intervening grooves adapted to telescope with the grooves and splines of a complementary male coupling element; the female coupling element having formed on its exterior wall a circumferential groove and the surrounding wall of the transmission element being reduced to enter and snugly engage said grooved wall to interlock the parts together, and a ferrule encircling the end portion of the transmission element and having its own end reduced to snugly engage the reduced wall of the transmission element.

5. A tubular transmission shaft tapering to- Ward each end and terminating in a substantially cylindrical rst socket portion of relatively smaller diameter at one end and a second socket portion of relatively larger diameter at the opposite end, each of the socket portions having formed on its-interior a series of locking splines and intervening grooves, a male coupling element having formed upon its Wall at its inner end a series of locking splines and intervening grooves closely interrltting with the grooves and splines of the first ,socket portion and the coupling element having formed upon its wall at its outer end a series of longitudinally extending coupling splines and intervening grooves adapted to register with the grooves and splines of a coupling element of complementary character, a female tubular coupling element having formed upon its exterior wall a series of locking splines and intervening grooves closely intertting With the grooves and splines of the second socket portion and the female coupling element having formed on its interior a series of longitudinally extending splines and intervening grooves adapted to register with the grooves and splines of a coupling element of complementary character, each of the coupling elements having formed in its exterior Wall a circumferential groove and the surrounding Wall of the shaft being rduced at each end to enter and snugly embrace said grooved walls to interlock the parts together, and a ferrule encircling each end of the shaft and having its own end reduced to snugly engage the underlying reduced Wall of the shaft.

`CLARENCE L. DEWEY. 

